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Halo Fonts
Magma, Munc & Tuff families
Halo fonts are produced by adding a small amount of weight uniformly to all characters in the primary font without changing the spacing or kerning. Their purpose is weight management.
Halo fonts can be used to compensate for the weight loss or gain caused by reverse printing, letterpress printing, or any other reproduction process which decreases or increases the weight of the type. The Halo fonts can also be used for creating “short” capitals and figures, and for footnotes, captons, or other uses that require matching the weight of the primary text size of the type when a smaller size is used. A more complete explanation of Halo fonts can be found in the Magma PDF Specimen Book.
The distribution of weights created with the Halo fonts in Magma and Tuff results in an even and subtle gradation. Using the weight just above or below the one currently selected will add or subtract a just noticable increment. The Halo fonts can, naturally, be used in any situation that seems appropriate.
One caution is in order. The width of each character in the Halo fonts is the same as in the primary font, but the weight has been increased. Therefore when the Halo fonts are not used in anticipation of a printing process that changes the weight of the type, it is generally necessary to track the Halo fonts, adding space between characters. For any font, the amount of tracking will depend on the size at which the type is used. The weight of type may vary considerably depending on the imaging process. There is generally, for instance, a considerable difference between the way the type looks on screen and the way it appears when printed. The Halo fonts are intended to help the designer choose an appropriate weight for each imaging process.
Halo fonts have many other uses as well. Typographers have found them useful in creating harmonious weight relationships in pages that use multiple sizes of type.
